Pondering under a tree
by CURSEDvenus
Summary: [oneshot] A shoulder where her head could rest.. who could that be? Words of the Hokage swam through both her and his mind... coming with one conclusion...


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(A/N): Konichiwa! My mood is getting better, for all those who are concerned… I know a few. Thank you all. Anyways, as a form of relaxation and stress release, I decided to do my first NejiSaku. My second favorite pairing in Naruto. Weird huh? How Neji is my FAVORITE anime character… listen… ANIME not NARUTO… ANIME character and I like him with a girl I don't hate nor love… just dislike… I'm messed up… X.x**

Ahh well, I mentioned this is my first right? Don't blame me if it sucks please…

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Naruto… If I did, I would SO not be typing fanfictions right now just for your amusement… I'd be… putting all the episodes half on Neji and his life and the other half a romantic story about Sasuke and Hinata… YEAH!

**Genre: **Angst/ Romance

**Rating: **K+… but as soon as any of you readers spot anything that's not right for the rating, please inform me…

…Enjoy…

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**"Pondering under a tree"**

**Haruno's POV**

_"To the world you may be one person, but to one person, you may be the world."_

Ah yes, Tsunade-shishou said that to me once. I think it was one of those days when she was utterly drunk and out of control. She suddenly got emotional and started babbling, sayings that surprisingly, tweaked my interest.

That saying was one of my favorites. Too bad I only liked it because of its meaning. I couldn't really see it being applied to me. I mean sure I have people who think I am special, but never to the extent of actually putting me in the place of the human globe.

As for me, that could have been one of the sayings I would have said to that raven haired Uchiha if he was still here and if I still harbored the same feelings for him. He had left, back when I was a genin, back when I was a weakling and a hindrance. Now? I'm proud to carry the title of being the most trusted medic nin in Konoha. Anyways, Uchiha Sasuke had been gone for 5 years now. Rumors have been spread, saying that he had been seen here and there at some times, his eyes different from when he was living in Leaf. I don't know the details given that I was never told about his situation, but I do know that he had some deal with a nin from Sound. I remember that tattoo looking seal that was given to him during our Chuunin exam. Maybe how he was doing now had something to do with that? I don't know…

**Hyuuga's POV**

_"There's always room for love; you just have to move a few things around."_

Foolish. What kind of a quote was that? A prodigy like me has no need for a useless emotion like 'love'. But having that in mind, SHE still told that to me, hinting with her emerald eyes that I should do something about my character. I was and still am a powerful shinobi no one would like to mess with. I am content this way. What else would I need?

But how would she out of all people understand? She practically lived on the emotion 5 years ago. It was her life line and oxygen, so I guess I couldn't blame her. At least she let go of that line and managed to find another source of breathing with time. And in doing so, she became a strong kunoichi, the strongest in Konohagakure.

Saying that I was proud of my jounin partner would be anything but an understatement.

**Haruno's POV**

_"Love means never having to say you're sorry…"_

Then it wasn't love? How could that be? All I feel like doing now is saying sorry… a word of apology to all those who were burdened by my weak existence. To Naruto for being rude just because I wanted Sasuke to look my way, to Ino for becoming her rival for something as insignificant as a puff of smoke, to Kakashi-sensei for having to deal with a crazy 12 year old obsessed girl, to Tsunade-sama for having me as her apprentice because I was so weak before that, to my parents for ignoring them for so long just so that I would never forget Sasuke, and last but not least… HIM…for having to lend me his shoulder every time I broke down crying for no particular reason. And even though he was as cold as they come, he let me be, he let me feel sorrow and pain while his shoulder kept my head up.

So all these sorrys… did they mean that my love for Sasuke when I was young was not real… was not LOVE?

**Hyuuga's POV**

_"If you judge people, you have no time to love them…"_

What was she trying to indicate with THAT saying? I don't judge…peo-… Okay, I do. Still, no one said that I wanted to end up loving them, in whatever demented way possible.

But I judged her that day, that day she fought with her supposedly rival, past 'best friend'… I had judged her to be a strong willed yet weak shinobi. Little did I know that even though it was wrong to judge, my little assumption was right. She WAS strong willed… and she even stated out herself that she was weak in the past.

Even after I had judged her… would it be wrong to…to… WHAT am I saying??? Curse you Haruno! Bringing all these useless thoughts to my mind…

**Haruno's POV**

_"Love can sometimes be magic… But magic can sometimes just be an illusion."_

I guess his looks were the magic there. And his cool character and personality… definitely magic. I can't run away from the fact any longer. I was so infatuated with him that I never really looked into my feelings… Now, I want to know if I even know what 'love' is… If I feel it for someone yet do not know who just like how I thought I loved Sasuke but it was nothing even near that.

He had left me, left his village and his best friend. Why? Only to have his revenge even if it meant giving his powers to someone evil in the end… Although I don't know what that exactly meant when it was told to me, it sounded wrong… it sounded like… betrayal.

**Hyuuga's POV**

_"Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless."_

I'd known that from the beginning. I was told so by my father before he was… put to death. But my hatred after such an incident forced me to forget my own father's words, leaving me bitter and rude to almost everyone. But the day I was pulled out of the darkness by a loud, obnoxious boy, was the day I started to remember my father's advice.

True I never became 'kind' to the word, but I stopped being bitter, I was told that it would lead me to nothing but a dead end and of course, a ninja like me did not need that. So I tried being kind from time to time, the change making me feel queer. But only to THAT person did I use such gentle phrases because I saw that she needed it most, with or without my Byakugan. And I guess the saying is true, the more I talked kindly, the more I saw her smile. And the more I saw her gain emotional strength.

I guess those were the echoes of my kindness… I can deal with that.

**Haruno's POV**

_"Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something."_

He was afraid of his brother, he loved the idea of finally killing him, and he lost his family… I guess I just couldn't even try to fit myself in any of his answers. It didn't seem right.

As for me… I am afraid of 'love', I love… I'll get back to that, and I have lost… so many things it's hard for me to count.

One day, I want to fill in the blanks in my answer with self confidence, a smile on my face. Of course, I would be saying it to HIM.

Then I'll answer this question… It's been 3 years. What IS he to me?

**Hyuuga's POV**

_  
"Love is like the sun coming out of the clouds and warming your soul." _

Assuming that that was true… then do I love her? I've been so cold for so long but when she came into the picture, I started to warm up, leaving my cold grunts and proud "Hns" somewhere where I would never be able to reach them again. Maybe friendship could do the same thing… It can't just be love that warms people up.

It just can't.

**Haruno's POV**

_"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength; loving someone deeply gives you courage."_

I was never strong when I was with him. I never even felt it. Courage? I guess it mingled in there somewhere, but I remember being scared from some things I really shouldn't even glance at. I do know that I gained courage from the desire to protect Naruto.

Yes, I love him… as a friend. A very precious one at that.

It only makes me wonder, if I have been told that I am strong, how much stronger could I get if someone loved me…

**Hyuuga's POV**

…

I never felt pity for her; it would only prove her weakness. Instead, I acted like a cruel teacher to his student, correcting the mistakes of the younger with harsh words and actions. When I finally saw that she was improving, THAT was when my kindness took over, and much to my dismay, that also increased her strength… leaving me no option but to be proud of both myself and her.

But things change, she's starting to space out more, she's starting to cry more than usual. I thought she stopped the tears from going out a couple of months ago… I was wrong. Her emerald eyes which looked best with happiness and mischief were now rarely seen with tears gathering inside them, of course, ONLY when my presence was the only one available.

At least that put me to rest. To know that she was strong enough to not fall for emotions when on missions and when she was with strangers. That would not be good. Rather, she trusted me to be there when she felt miserable and sad, and as a reward, I made sure that it was my shoulder she would lean on when her forest eyes filled with the same substance of salty liquid.

One day, as a genius and an authoritative jounin… I will permanently stop her tears from flowing…

But is that it? Only because I am a strong jounin I would do that?

**Haruno's POV**

_"No guy is worth your tears and the ones who are won't make you cry..."_

I had always thought that he was worth it. I have always tried to convince myself that I was not crying because of him, but because of the events that he discharged. How wrong I was… It was only another one of my stupid excuses to keep Sasuke from the guilty side. Like all the other things I made up for him.

I still cry to this day, even though it has already been half a century since the last time I saw him, I still manage to feel the sadness of what he had caused. I want to know, why it is that I just can't forget and forgive. Why is it that when I cry, I can't find the reason… why.

But most importantly, will I ever find him? The one that will deserve my tears yet never let them escape my eyes… does he even exist?

**Flashback & out of POV**

_Her pink hair played with the wind as she increased speed, her quick inhales of oxygen breaking the silence of the plains that surrounded her. She was excited, happy to know that she, out of all the kunoichis in Konoha was the one chosen to do such a mission. To complete one task for the ambassador of Grass, before she came out of hospital. _

_--_

_She had come down with a slight fever so she was asked to take a break. Coincidentally, in that period of time, a task was to be done and the ambassador was not available seeing that she was ill. _

_Tsunade had explained to Sakura that she was needed, and it had to be done in less than a week. The Hokage also told her that she was to do well since it was to be a small test to see Sakura's improvement. The pink haired girl grinned and nodded to the kage, almost immediately leaving the woman's office to complete the mission._

--

_With a scroll in hand, and a few weapons in her side and back pockets, she hummed silently as she made her way through the plains, a bit too confident. She had finished the job of the ambassador from Grass, and was already on her way back to her village. _

_As her mind wandered through the files of past memories, thinking about what Sasuke would have said and how he would have reacted if he saw her now, shadows of unknown figures were mutely following her, making their presence oblivious to the pink haired ninja._

_A few minutes after her mind's swimming through the pool of memories, one of the figures stopped in her tracks, surprising her with his bulky body and displeasing looks. _

_Her eyes widened with shock and fright, quickly turning around to attempt an escape but with no avail. There stood another man, one whose looks would be marked as 'satisfactory', yet the same gleam of evilness emitted from his eyes like the colossal man._

_She quickly took her stance, avoiding any conversation to go between herself and the two strangers. _

_"Well, well, well… what do we have here?"_

_"Looks like a cute little ninja from…" the shorter and more appealing one took a quick and close glance at the emerald eyed girl's forehead protector and grinned, "Leaf."_

_The now angry Chuunin from Konoha snorted in disgust and roughly asked what they wanted. Their only answer was an amused look from both men as they too took their stance._

_"We weren't planning to see a little teenager pass by here, it's usually a fair looking woman. Looks like something happened." The ugly man started, signaling his partner to continue, "You see, we've been trying to catch her for… personal reasons… and frankly, we're mad that it's you instead of her today. No offence kid, but we need to take out our anger out on someone."_

_Her pink hair was swayed with the wind as she narrowed her eyes in disgust, clearly understanding the reasons for the pursuit of the men before her for the Grass ambassador. She quickly took out two kunais and held them like daggers, running towards her opponents, calmly stating out before the clash,_

_"I wouldn't have it any other way."_

--

_Red liquid was forcefully sent out of her mouth, her hands clenching the grass below her crouched figure. She managed to overpower the weaker and more insignificant one, leaving her only one more, almost tired opponent to bring down._

_"Weak… Assuming from your looks, I am guessing you are near 13 or so… Sad. One would think a ninja to be strong at that point of age. Let me tell you, you are one weak kid…" He harshly said, wiping a few drops of blood from his cracked lips._

_She was too tired, she tried to run away for awhile, to regain much needed chakra but it was no use. He was too fast and running fast enough to out speed him would use even more chakra, she hated giving up but she just sat down, more blood being coughed out of her mouth. _

_"I'll ease the pain." She closed her eyes and surrendered, trying to feel content that she was at least able to beat the other man, and also leave the one now charging towards her quite weary._

_"_ _Hakke Rokujuyon Sho__!" _

_A distant yet firm voice shouted out, her green eyes now staring at a back of white and…slight brown. _

_The ugly man was left lying down; his body unable to stand up let alone move a single finger. A familiar yet strange person had picked up the kunoichi and placed her on the shore of some nearby river, his now gentle hands wiping off the blood from her mouth. _

_Her eyesight was still fuzzy from the previous fight, making the person still unknown to him. _

_"Can you speak?" The person asked his voice void from any emotion whatsoever._

_"Hai." Was her whispered reply, her eyelids opening and closing rapidly and trying to gain her sight back. _

_"Patience. You'll be able to see in a few minutes." The voice stated out before he left her side to sit somewhere a few feet away from the girl. _

--

_She had finally stood up after a couple of hours of sleep, looking around her to see if the one who had saved her was still there. Sure enough, after a few turns of her head, she spotted an alluring looking boy sitting peacefully away from her with his hands proudly crossed over his chest and his eyes closed calmly, making an image of a sleeping shinobi. _

_"Hyuuga-san." Was what she remembered his last name was. They weren't even on a first name basis, so they were practically strangers to each other._

_"Let's go." The calm boy said suddenly, making the poor kunoichi jump in surprise._

_"I thought you were asleep." _

_"That'd be dangerous… I'm not dumb." He said coldly, glaring at the girl now standing in front of him, her head reaching just below his chin._

_She smiled then started to continue her journey back to Konoha, a small conversation going on between the two. _

_"So, Hyuuga-san… First I want to thank you for that kind act of generosity, and second, I want to ask what your reason was for you to be there at that time." The girl started, her running a bit slower than the Hyuuga's by a foot._

_"My answer to both of your statements is that it was a mission." He replied apathetically, his lavender eyes focusing on the path before him._

_"Mission? I didn't know anyone was on a mission while I was gone…"_

_Sakura was always told about missions, since she WAS the apprentice of Tsunade, she had to hold the responsibility of knowing where the ninjas of Konoha were and at what time._

_"You weren't told about it obviously." He stated out almost annoyingly, his long hair riding the wind as the cool air surrounded his running body._

_"Why?"_

_"It was a mission to see that you would do okay, and to protect you at the time of need." He finished with a tone that told Sakura that the conversation had ended._

--

_Although the girl didn't like the fact that she was not trusted to complete the mission without having help, she was grateful that the Hyuuga genius was there to save her when she needed it._

_She was also grateful that even though he was instructed to inform the Hokage if there were any flaws in the kunoichi's mission the only thing he said after a quick glance at the girl beside him was,_

_"No, Hokage-sama. The mission went smoothly except for a few interruptions which were disposed of quickly." _

_But when he said the following sentence before they were excused from the woman's office, Sakura knew that he had kept in mind that he would not leave before implying that she needed more practice._

_"Although she needs to train harder if she ever wishes to stay as your apprentice, Hokage-sama." _

**End of flashback**

And THAT is how the lavender orbed shinobi and the forest orbed kunoichi got acquainted, and strangely became extremely close.The reasons all behind one word… 'Strength'.

**Haruno's POV**

_"Only love let's us see normal things in an extraordinary way."_

He did that… He let me see so many ordinary things in a different and exciting perspective. Like the time when we just sat down and watched the sky when a bird suddenly flew past, starting a conversation and letting him explain to me what it meant to be a 'caged bird' in his family. To any other person, it would have been plain information, but to me… it was interesting and this might sound foolish… but… tear breaking in some weird way.

He did that…

Sasuke never let me see things in that way…

As a matter of fact, he never even let me see anything…

But he did… his lavender eyes always showed that he wanted to show me so many things, but he never told me why…

Is it really only love that does that?

Then maybe I should just admit it… maybe it had been there the whole time, all the three years of knowing him… maybe I just didn't look well enough…

**Hyuuga's POV**

_"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is to love and be loved in return."_

Then maybe I'm not a genuis, not a prodigy… because I certainly have neither. But can I teach myself? Will I be able to gain such a powerful and what I thought to be… useless feeling?

But first of all, do I need it? Will it gain me power?

…

For the first time in my life I threw that thought away as soon as it registered in my mind. This time, I want to see what I want… what would make ME content. For awhile, I want to be selfish, not for what I need… but what I want.

**Out of POV**

They ended their train of thoughts after an hour of silence and looked at each other from under the large tree.

Clean, silver orbs met calm, green forests, both of their eyes unable to decipher the other's facial expression.

"Neji…" She missed the suffix that time, confused and stuck between which of the two suffixes she should use with the current emotion in her… 'san' or 'kun'.

"Hm?" He asked, never looking away from her eyes, her face mere centimeters away.

"I… found him." She answered simply, placing a gentle and soft hand on her new found affection's cheek.

He wasn't dense nor was he baffled. He could see in her eyes who she was talking about and what she meant by 'found'… and honestly speaking, a rare feeling of contentment and satisfaction entered his heart, making it warm and tighten with a new emotion.

He managed a ghost of a smile, which still pleased the kunoichi since it was placed on his handsome face for her and her only.

"Well then, I guess he shouldn't run away from the one who found him… seeing that he was lost anyways." His voice was extremely calm, the intensity of the gentleness of it and his eyes melting the pink haired girl's heart.

She smiled at him and said one more saying before sealing that she had indeed found him with her lips,

_"Open your heart … open it wide; someone is standing outside."

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**(A/N): **Ne… ne… ne! Was it good? I'm annoying… . Back to the point, if the writing was a bit confusing, I'll try to explain in quickly… all the POV's and the thoughts were done while under that tree. THAT part was easy… I hope none of you got confused with that or else I'd have some stupid readers… -dodges plush kunais-…I'm just kidding!!!! As for the flashback, I think it got out of hand, I didn't plan for it to be that long, but I just left it be… I HATE editing…

Ages? Let's see… I did say that it had been 5 years since Sasuke left, and when he did Sakura was like 12 I guess? Then she says that she'd known Neji for 3 years… Ahh… you do the math. That shouldn't be hard.

But out of sheer kindness and courtesy, here are the ages and do thank me for putting them at the end since if I had put it at the beginning it would have ruined the story…

Sakura 17

Sakura in flashback 14

Neji 18

Neji in flashback 15

And me? I'm like as old as they can get darlings… I ask my grand, grand, grand daughter to type for me while I S-L-O-W-L-Y word out the story… (She's like around 20 or so) I'll just leave it up to you guys to guess how old I really am. I heard some people who are really smart or just have talent can tell how old someone is by simply reading something that was written by them. COOL!

Take care…


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